The most un-chopper-esque thread ever, book recommendations

[ExplodingCoffinEmporium]

I started Jack Londons Sea Wolf a few days ago, always enjoyed his other novels, figured give it a go. With that being said, always enjoyed the opinions of many on this site, what’s a book(s) that you would recommend someone read at least once in their lifetime?

[ForeverRaw]

For Sci-Fi:
The Hyperion Cantos by Dan Simmons. Its 4 books, unreal Story.
Rama by Arthur Clarke, really anything by him he wrote 2001: A Space Odyssey

The World Beyond Your Head and Shop Class as Soul Craft by Matthew B Crawford

[JBinNC]

I read Sea Wolf a couple of years ago, I think it was the first J. London book I ever read. Enjoyed it and went on to his other works.

My favorite American author is either John Steinbeck or Mark Twain, depending on how I'm feeling at the moment. Anything by either of them is rewarding. "The Grapes of Wrath" and "East of Eden" by the former, and "Huckleberry Finn" and "Roughing It" by the latter should be required reading by any American of letters.

My favorite living American author is James Ellroy, so much so that I re-read his books every few years. Very much modern noir and very violent. His "Underworld U.S.A. Trilogy" is highly recommended.

I'm coming around on Hemingway as I get older, so there may be some hope for me as a literate human. "For Whom the Bell Tolls" is his novel based on his experience in the Spanish civil war.

Jim

[confab]

You can't find them now, but the older collections of short stories bundled and marketed under the Alfred Hitchcock name were the best.

It takes real skill to do a compelling short story, particularly the macabre stuff, and He/They/Whoever it was, were excellent at sifting through and finding the good ones.

There was one I read as a kid and I still can't forget how awesome it was despite the seeming lameness of the subject matter. It was about a magic, unpronounceable word that was the perfect answer to anything, and how it led the man who came to possess it to ruin. If I were rich, I would do a screen adaptation of that book.

Nobody seems to be able to do this well now and it shows. Which is sad, because that is my favorite genre.

[DoomBuggy]

In horror Stephen King's Dark Tower / Gunslinger series of books are the best of his work. They are kind of Clint Eastwood/Man With No Name and Lord of the Rings mash-up. I re-read the whole series earlier this year and have been working through some of the ancillary books to the series, the Talisman and Black House. Good stuff for the most part. Guy can't write a sex scene to save his life, but the rest of the stories are tight!

[ExplodingCoffinEmporium]

I read Sea Wolf a couple of years ago, I think it was the first J. London book I ever read. Enjoyed it and went on to his other works.

My favorite American author is either John Steinbeck or Mark Twain, depending on how I'm feeling at the moment. Anything by either of them is rewarding. "The Grapes of Wrath" and "East of Eden" by the former, and "Huckleberry Finn" and "Roughing It" by the latter should be required reading by any American of letters.

My favorite living American author is James Ellroy, so much so that I re-read his books every few years. Very much modern noir and very violent. His "Underworld U.S.A. Trilogy" is highly recommended.

I'm coming around on Hemingway as I get older, so there may be some hope for me as a literate human. "For Whom the Bell Tolls" is his novel based on his experience in the Spanish civil war.

Jim

I read Huckberry Finn years ago, great book. I have a copy of Grapes of Wrath on the shelf that I’ve always meant to get at. I think after I’m finished with Sea Wolf I’ll definitely give it a go, have been meaning to for years.

[ExplodingCoffinEmporium]

In horror Stephen King's Dark Tower / Gunslinger series of books are the best of his work. They are kind of Clint Eastwood/Man With No Name and Lord of the Rings mash-up. I re-read the whole series earlier this year and have been working through some of the ancillary books to the series, the Talisman and Black House. Good stuff for the most part. Guy can't write a sex scene to save his life, but the rest of the stories are tight!

My dad always praised the Dark Tower series, another read I’ll have to take on. I read a lot of Kings horror work growing up, Salems lot scared the shit out of me as a young teenager anytime I was near a window at night for the first week after I finished it.

[flatman]

The long walk. Movie sucked bad, book is excellent. And its a true story

[confab]

In horror Stephen King's Dark Tower / Gunslinger series of books..

I read it too.

Someone told King went through drug rehab during this period. I dunno if it is true?

But it would probably explain why it just kicks total ass with this guy who is just a total badass.. A piece of sentient sinew. A man so pure a badass, trained from birth, that sugar is a medicinal thing to him and he burns circles in his fingers from hot bullets, as he guns down an entire town..

And then involves a train that is losing its mental facilities, but still likes prime numbers a great deal.. And murder.. Of course.

But it was still okay and he did a good job incorporating high tech into this dystopian world.. It was still great.. And it kept it interesting.. I still loved it.

And then there's like this forever long wait on the third book.

Where they're having orgies and there's love interest BS..

And you're like: "What in the fuck just happened to my story? Seriously? WHY? I hate you!"

I am told the answer to that is rehab..

And I never, ever thought I would actually endorse hereon use? But, I remember thinking someone should probably buy him some. lol.

[TwoSheds]

Papillon by Henri Charriere. Great movie with Steve McQueen but as usual, the book is better.

[DoomBuggy]

If you are a true Sci-Fi fan then I can wholeheartedly recommend "A Mote In God's Eye" by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle, also the sequels are very good. The first sequel "The Gripping Hand" was written by Niven and Pournelle, the second sequel "Outies" by Pournelle's daughter.

I normally prefer pure Sci-Fi over Horror or Fantasy, but I make an exception for King and the old classics ( Dracula is still a GREAT read ).

ECE, the priest from Salem's Lot makes an appearance in one of the Dark Tower books, as a matter of fact a lot of his characters from his other works show up!

ConFab, King actually goes into why he started and stopped the series so many times, in essence he says he wasn't sure if Roland was a good guy or not, and he didn't like him from time to time. I read the series as he was releasing them ( still have a full set of the standard editions ) and just finished rereading them on a Kindle, man was it nice not to have to wait.

[drivermark]

The Riddle of the Sands by Erskine Childers Adventure, intrigue, sailboats.
Almost anything by Vince Flynn.

[ForeverRaw]

The Things They Carried and Going After Cacciato by Tim O'Brien. All of his books are pretty good, these are my favorites.
Rogue Warrior by Richard Marcinko. This is his autobiography, he's the Navy Seal who founded Seal Team 6. Its a must read for any military history buffs. He's also written a bunch of fiction books based on real people from his Seal Teams.

[BadMonkeyMW]

Wraiths of the Broken Land for a hardcore, violent western novel. Written by S. Craig Zahler, the same guy who made the movie Bone Tomahawk.

[farmall]

About Face by David Hackworth (not the old "cognitive decline" Hackworth but the highly decorated and more important, highly effective counterinsurgent warrior) is worth a read for those wondering why US politicians and the senior uniformed leadership they appoint fuck up (and cannot do differently) constabulary wars.

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig was inflicted on me in high school. Years of wrenching later I reread it with understanding.

Machinery's Handbook is a tome every machinist keeps handy (traditional machinists chests have a dedicated drawer for the print version which is most convenient but there are various downloads online and the info changes so little you don't need a current edition to work on older equipment. Most mechanics haven't learnt to use it but a good way is leave a copy in the shithouse for browsing. They also publish a companion since there's so much content. Not all tools are metal.

http://library.uc.edu.kh/userfiles/pdf/19.Machinery%27s%20handbook.pdf